Danganronpa IF: Maizono no Jikan
by The Drifter Wonderer
Summary: What if. What if Leon Kuwata didn't kill Sayaka Maizono. What if, instead of her plan backfiring and ending in her death, it instead destroyed their only hope? What if Sayaka found hope from the despair of having to watch her friend die? What if Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc focused on the Ultimate Pop Sensation?
1. Chapter 1

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 ** _Chapter 1_**

"Hi, I'm Sayaka Maizono. I look forward to getting to know you."

I introduced myself to this boy the same way I did to everyone else around me. But, this boy is not one to whom I needed to introduce myself. We had gone to Blackroot Junior High together. We were in different classes sure, but I had seen him around the halls and I believe the same true for him. Of course, he's changed so much since then. No doubt I have too. He probably doesn't even remember me for anything other than a pop idol.

But I remember him more than I remember most of the other students who I studied with in Class 4. I remember watching him as he nursed an injured crane back to health all by his lonesome.

That sweet, normal kid: Makoto Naegi.

Now, I lay on my back, facing the ceiling of this room. "Kill or be killed." That black and white bear says that our only method of escaping this school - this PRISON - is to kill one of our classmates without anyone finding out we did so.

I shift, and roll onto my side. Those horrible images from the DVD I was given replay over and over in my mind.

"I need to get out of here." I wimper as a tear falls from my eye. I clutch the pillow my head lays upon. Before I roll out of my bed, a plan hatching in my mind. All I need, is his cooperation.

I walk out of my room, and clutch both of my forearms. As an idol, it's second-nature to me to fake a smile, but I can just as easily fake any other emotion. Placing a mask of fear on my face, I slowly knock on Makoto's door. "Sorry to bother you, but... something weird just happened."

"Something... weird?" Makoto ushers me into his room, and I begin to see my plan unfolding.

"Just a little while ago, I was laying down in my room, and all of a sudden, my door started rattling and shaking." I eye the decorative sword the two of us had collected earlier in the day. A tear comes to my eye.

"Um, if you don't mind, could we maybe switch rooms? Just for tonight?"

Makoto and I agree to switch rooms, just for tonight. My plan has been set in motion. If my target acts like I think he will, there's no way I'll be in this prison for another night.

"See you in the morning." I tell Makoto, as he backs out of his bedroom and into mine. As I hear my door click closed, I get my preparations done. First, the note.

I get out the knife I pocketed from the kitchen earlier. I'm about to commit murder. I almost laugh to myself. What am I doing!? Why is this happening to me!?

Leon Kuwata, the Ultimate Baseball Star, was my target. It all went to plan. He never suspected a I never expected to happen was that he would fight back. He grabbed the decorative sword and used its sheath to block my knife. Then he broke my wrist before I could flee into the washroom for safety.

"What are you doing!?" I hear a voice from the other side of the door, but it's not the voice belonging to the Ultimate Baseball Star. No, it's the voice of the Ultimate Lucky Student.

"Makoto!?" I crawl up to the door, and slowly open it. My broken wrist should hurt like crazy, but the confusion and the adrenaline must be numbing my senses.

Through the crack in the door, I see the two standing face to face. Leon's face is as white as a ghost's. Though I know differently, Makoto believes that Leon's attacking me in cold blood. I should feel relieved but... I don't.

I see Leon glance towards the dresser, where he had put my knife after I dropped it. Makoto does not seem to notice, but I understand as I scream out to him. "Makoto! Run!"

Makoto, a look of surprise on his face, screams out my name in confusion, but does not move an inch. As I feared, I watch as Leon thrusts the long kitchen knife into my friend's stomach.

It all happens in slow motion. The shaking of Leon's hands, the way he twists the knife to dig it deeper into Makoto's torso, the way his face slowly morphs from worry to confusion to a deep-seeded despair. "Being positive is, like, my only good trait." Makoto had said earlier in the day, but as he screams out in pain, the only vibes I feel from him are those of despair.

Leon looks down at his hands, caked with blood, then at Makoto, laying down with all his blood slowly pooling around him. I hear Leon curse once, then again, before he runs out of the door. "Shitshitshitshitshit..." he whispers the entire time he does so.

After making sure Leon has left, I slowly creep open the door fully. Crawling towards him, I see him smile. "Say...aka..." he mutters. His voice is barely audible, and his face blurs as tears fill my eyes. "You're safe... I'm... glad... I hoped..." he gasps out as his heavy eyelids fall. I scream out his name, but he doesn't answer me as he closes his eyes.

I don't know for how long I sit there, but I do. Sobbing my eyes out, I hold Makoto's hand close to my heart. He didn't deserve to die, and it's all my fault he did. If I wasn't so selfish. No, if that stupid bear didn't give me that DVD, then everything would have been fine. Makoto would still be alive.

"That certainly didn't go how I thought it would." a high voice squeaks from behind me, and a black and white shape fills my vision. "In all honesty, I thought you were going to be kicking the bucket. Not, Makoto here."

I grab the bear by what I assume would be his neck, and try my hardest to suffocate him. With my bum wrist, the only think I manage is a weak squeeze. He laughs at me, before brushing my hand away. "Come with me, I'll fix your wrist right up. It's the least I could do for you considering how poorly your murder attempt played out."

I hesitate for a moment, but as he spoke, he seemed to release the floodgates. All of the pain in my wrist that I should have felt since Leon broke it flew into my body. I winced. "Fine." I look away from him. Away from his stupid red eye.

The next thing I know, I'm falling into darkness. Monokuma's shrill "upupupu" echoes through the shroud of shadow, as does Makoto's last words.

"I hoped."


	2. Chapter 2

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

The girl hears two things, one after another, that she does not expect to hear. Not yet, anyway.

"A body has been discovered! After a brief period of investigation, a Class Trial will begin!", and, "Makoto Naegi is dead. That is the undeniable truth."

Mukuro Ikusaba, known to the other students as Junko Enoshima, was heartbroken. She is one of the Despair Sisters, born with the intent to create a world of chaos under her sister's brand of despair. Yet, as she stands in the hallway with her twelve other classmates, something inside her snaps.

Leon Kuwata, Mondo Owada, Kiyotaka Ishimaru, Sakura Ogami, Hifumi Yamada, Celestia Ludenberg, Yasuhiro Hagakure, Toko Fukawa, Aoi Asahina, Chihiro Fujisaki, Kyoko Kirigiri, and standing directly in front of her, Byakuya Togami. Makoto Naegi lays on the other side of the closed door, a smile on his oddly-serene, yet ice cold, face. Though a seasoned soldier, a member of an elite mercenary group, with a record of escaping combat without as much as a single scratch, the scene of Makoto Naegi laying in a pool of blood broke something within her. She could not speak; she could not think. She didn't even feel awake.

As she stands in shock, she is faintly aware of the conversation taking place behind her. Of the accusations that Ultimate Pop Sensation Sayaka Maizono, whom Makoto Naegi trusted dearly and is currently nowhere to be found, must be the killer. Of Kyoko Kirigiri, who silently brushed past her and through the wooden door in front of them. As the Ultimate Detective, Mukuro knew that Kyoko could discover how the crime occurred.

What she is aware of is her sister's voice deep in the depths of her mind. The two Despair Sisters, they have - no, they had - a plan. First, have Sakura Ogami was to murder another student and begin the killings, after which Mukuro would stand up against Monokuma and be dropped down a trap door to aid her sister behind the scenes.

But, judging from the strange look on Sakura Ogami's face, Mukuro knew that somehow, that plan did not work out how it was supposed to.

Before she could realize what she was doing, Mukuro ran. She knew the action would have made her suspicious, but she wanted an answer. She crashed through the door marked with a small image of and the name of her sister, Junko Enoshima. Collapsing against the door, she stares at the camera resting above her bed, imagining her sister's smile as she watched her succumb to the despair she loves.

"Junko? What's going on?" Mukuro studders as she grasps for words. "Why is... is HE dead!?"

Knowing Junko wouldn't expose her cover, not even to her, she didn't expect a response. Thus, as she hears the voice of one of the many, seemingly omnipotent Monokuma units positioned around the school, she feels an odd sense of dread in her gut.

"Why is Makoto Naegi dead? I know you're stupid sis, but I didn't think you'd be so stupid as to forget the plan we've been working on for so long!" the Monokuma laughs his creepy laugh, and Mukuro glares at the robot.

"Yes, but, why him!" she throws her arms up. "He was... I thought... You said...!"

"I say a lot of things." The Monokuma waves its paw in a circle, before inching closer to the Ultimate Soldier. "It's the despair of seeing those lies come crashing down on the victims that I absolutely love!"

Mukuro stares at the robot in disbelief. She thinks to herself, 'was the plan always to kill Makoto? How could I have been so blind?', yet before she has a chance to ask her sister, the Monokuma unit responds to the questions lingering in her mind. "No, the plan wasn't always that Makoto would be killed. Remember how optimistic he was when we boarded up the school? I was hoping to use that... Ultimate Hope to bring about Ultimate Despair.

"No, I did not plan for Makoto's death. I was just as surprised as you were as I watched the whole ordeal play out."

"Then... then who killed him?"

"Ehh!? Well, if I revealed that, there'd be no reason to hold a Class Trial, would there?" The bear muses that sentiment for a moment, before concluding. "Of course, I could just knock you out until it's over, just as I did to his BFF. After all, it wouldn't be fun if someone just revealed who the killer was right off the bat."

"I wouldn't tell them! I'd keep it a secret!"

"I highly doubt that. Even a soldier of despair seems to have a soft heart of hope." The bear's expression - though static - seems to explode for a moment, as if an idea popped into its mind. "I guess, if you really want to know, I could just kill you."

Kyoko Kirigiri studied Makoto's corpse. Though she could not remember her talent, she remembered all the things a detective should look for when faced with a case.

A single stab wound to the abdomen. The knife - likely taken from the kitchen at some point yesterday, Kyoko deduces - remains in his stomache. Cause of death: blood loss. All that, she had known from the file that Monokuma gave out after explaining what the Class Trial was; all she had done was confirm it for herself.

In the doorway of the dorm room stands the Ultimate Martial Artist and the Ultimate Swimming Pro, Sakura Ogami and Aoi Asahina. At some point during her investigation, the two took up the position of keeping track of everyone entering and exiting the crime scene, so no one would interfere with evidence.

That was their job, anyway. Aoi wouldn't even enter the room. No one else wanted to either.

They have been mostly silent, never bothering Kyoko as she worked, but the Ultimate Detective looks up when Sakura makes a surprising exclamation, and as she hears the voice following it.

"Junko!?"

"I'm hear to investigate the crime scene."

Kyoko doesn't turn towards the Ultimate Fashionista, but she does acknowledge when she kneels on the opposite side of Makoto's body. There was something different about the girl since she last saw her. Her eyes hold a fierce, concentrated, intensity.

Slowly, Junko leans towards Kyoko, and speaks a few words. Though they surprise her, the Ultimate Detective's calm expression does not waver. "Sayaka Maizono's innocent. I know where she is."


	3. Chapter 3

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

Even back then, Makoto was more optimistic than the average person. He was kinder, too. More... more human than most others. Me, I never realized how inhuman I was. I blocked my true emotions by a smile.

I saw him that one day. He helped an injured crane that fell into the schoolyard. I didn't say it to his face, but that was the first day I came to see how... how different he was from me, and from the others at our school. He was average, but without my talent... I would be too.

He promised me something. He promised he'd get me out of this school. I wanted to believe him. I truly wanted, with all my might, to believe that Makoto Naegi would be my knight and shining armor. Like he was to that crane so long ago.

Now I float in a vast field of emptiness. The perfect blue sky, the perfect green grass. Just me, and Makoto. He stands facing me, as I do to him. I know this is a dream, but I feel something in my heart as he smiles. "I promised I'd get you out, Sayaka." he says gesturing to the area around us. "We're out. We're safe. Together."

I want to believe it, but believing in false hope is worse than succumbing to despair. So I retaliate. Or I want to. But I can't bring myself to do so. I croak out a "thank you" as tears drown my eyes. I don't know why I apologized to him, or my mental image of him, but I felt a need to. A longing to. Maybe, it was for all he taught me when he aided the crane?

Whatever the reason, I know not to take his now out-stretched hand. "Come on! Let's go build our future, together. Just me and you. The perfect future."

Junko eyes the door. It's closed, for all that's worth. "Don't worry." she says, "They should be soundproof rooms... That's what Monokuma told me." Next she eyes the camera mounted in the corner of the room. I take note of that. "Sayaka is being held in the nurse's office. It's barricaded so we wouldn't find her. I think Monokuma drugged her."

I see something in Junko. A determination. But why is she determined? To stay alive? No. Maybe...

"Thank you for the information." I stand up and prepare to leave.

"One more thing..." she says, rummaging around in the underside of her shirt. From, what I can assume is a secret hidden pocket, she holds up a small vial with pink liquid in it. "When I saw her, she looked drugged or something. This is a drink that is guaranteed to awaken those who drink it..." when she sees me glance at her, she adds "I need it to wake up sometimes. Coffee just doesn't do it for me, y'know?"

"If she's being held captive by Monokuma, then I'll assume she'll be a valuable asset to solving this case." I eye Junko one more time. "Let me ask you something. Why are you helping me or Sayaka?"

"Huh?" Junko performs an odd waving gesture with both her hands, almost as if dismissing my question. "I mean, if we don't solve this case we're going to be executed, right?" The answer I was expected. "That," she adds, unexectedly, "and I wanted to have a little chat with Makoto. Guess that won't be happening now."

"One more question. Why didn't you help her?"

"You'd probably get more information out of her than I would." she says, prodding Makoto's limp hand. I see a tear fall from her face as she does so.

"I understand. Thank you." I swiftly exit the room. As I do, I am stopped by Aoi Asahina, yelling "have you found out who did it!?" I acknowledge her with a smile. "I have an idea." is my only answer. The whole conversation lasts seconds, and I am down the hall and gone soon after.

It is only when I stand in front of the barricaded Nurse's Office do I understand how difficult a task it would be. Technically, this would be regarded as going against Monokuma's rules, yet didn't he go against what he said before about not interfering with us? Either way, I should be cautious not to attract too much attention.

Sneaking through the barricade, it's not hard to find Sayaka. After all, the office consists of two beds, medicinal cabinets, and a desk. The beds would be the only place for Sayaka to be; and just as Junko said, she seemed to be in a drugged state.

I think four words: this is too easy. All too suddenly, I realize a presence behind me. A small, monochromatic presence with an odd red eye.

"Whoa whoa whoa! What do we have here? Someone trying to interfere with the trial?"

"Isn't that what you're doing?" I ask, my voice as emotionless as I can make it.

"So I've been found out. Yeah, if Ms. Blue Hair over here was to participate in the Class Trial, there'd be no reason to have it."

"And why is that?" I ask, knowing all-to-well his answer.

"I don't think I need to tell you that. You've probably figured it out yourself, huh?" He shuffles his way towards me but stops at the edge of the bedframe. "I must say Kirigiri, you've got guts to come in here, what with it barricaded and all. I should punish you right here, right now!"

"I thought you said before you weren't going to interfere with us? If you could break your own rules once, I believed I'd be in the right to do the same." I brush back one of my bangs. "Besides, you wouldn't kill me now. Not when no one is around to see it."

The bear laughs. "You know me all too well! And this game has just started!"

"This isn't a game." I say. Sure, a twisted game of truth or dare may be one way to describe this situation we have been trapped in, but that would be a meaningless conclusion to the decisions I've made; decisions I'm not proud of.

"Fine. Maybe it's not a game. Would it be fine to call it a story, though? A tale? A work of fiction?"

"Fiction?" I ask him.

"Is that the wrong one? I get them mixed up all the time." He looks down at the ground, sad. "Fine. Here's the deal. I'll let Sayaka go, if you do something for me. Or rather, don't do something for me." I look at the vial trapped beneath my gloved fingers, and then to Sayaka's face. Monokuma continues. "After all, you did break my rules. I could either kill you before you wake Sayaka up, or let you both go if you just make a deal with me."

The odds of me being able to trick him, awaken Sayaka, and leave without getting harmed are slim. Extremely slim. It would be wiser to listen to what he has to say, so I do. Once he's concluded with his bargain, he disappears, allowing me to awaken Sayaka. As expected, the drug takes a few minutes to wear off, but once it does, Sayaka's wide awake.

"Where am I?" she asks.

"Nurse's office." A short answer, but informative nonetheless. Assuming she's been drugged since Makoto's death, Sayaka likely does not know that the truth must be uncovered in a Class Trial or else we will all be executed.

"Oh my god!" she yells, likely remembering all of the events that unfolded. "Makoto... he's...!"

"Sorry to break up the touching reunion." Monokuma says. This time, not from behind me, but from the monitor on the wall. "Ahem. As I was saying, I'm getting tired of waiting. You guys seem anxious to start this thing too. So, let's all meet up at the trial ground. It's through the two red doors on the first floor of the school."

"Class Trial?" Sayaka asks me, and I turn around. "What's going on."

"We need to reveal who killed Makoto Naegi."


	4. Chapter 4

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

"Ahem. Let me explain the rules of the Class Trial!"

"I don't think that'll be necessary." Kyoko Kirigiri says from across the circle of podiums that all fourteen of us stand at. "The only explanation that is necessary..." she trails off, pointing at the framed image of Makoto's face positioned at the podium next to me.

"Friendship transcends even death's barrier! I wouldn't want to leave Mr. Lucky over there out, would I?"

Celestia Ludenberg is the next to pipe up. "What about that empty podium? Why are there sixteen podiums but only fifteen of us?"

Monokuma just nonchalantly brushes off that remark. "Ehh. The trial ground's designed for up to sixteen people. Maybe I'll pop in for an argument or two at some point." He lays down across the arms of his large throne. "Now then, let's get cracking! The first thing you guys should go over: how was Makoto Naegi killed?"

Byakuya Togami doesn't even hesitate. "That much should have been obvious just from looking at his body." he adjusts his glasses. "Makoto Naegi was stabbed in the stomach with a knife and quickly bled to death."

"Umm..." Chihiro Fujisaki shifts at her podium. "So... where did the killer get the knife?"

This time, Kyoko Kirigiri answers without missing a beat. "The knife appears to have been taken from the kitchen."

Aoi Asahina pipes up next. "Oh! So that's why there was one missing. It was really odd. Yesterday, me and Sakura were drinking tea in the kitchen. One minute, all of the knives were there, the next time I entered the kitchen, one was missing."

Leon Kuwata chimes in his two cents next. Not on the case, but on the much less important matter of: "Wait... who's Sakura again?"

If we weren't standing at pedestals, I could imagine Sakura striding up in front of Leon. Instead, the way she seems to expand her presence seems a satisfying enough response for Leon. "It is I." she says anyway.

"Hina. Did you see anybody while you were in the dining hall?" Ishimaru's the one who asks that. Though his voice is strong, like me, he seems to be hiding his true emotions behind a mask. He's scared, we all are. If what Kyoko told me before is true, then...

"Umm... oh yeah." she eyes me. Oh no. "Sayaka! She went in to the kitchen."

"Yeah..." I look down. "I took the knife."

"Then that would mean you killed him!" Hifumi once again yells his thoughts. Though I can understand the reason for him blaming me, I'm the only one who knows otherwise. I don't have a chance to retaliate, as Kyoko stands up for me.

"Sayaka did not kill Makoto. Through my investigation, there were many clues that pointed towards Sayaka being the culprit, but there was always something that felt... wrong."

"What do you mean, wrong?" Mondo asks, slamming his hand into the pedestal.

"If Sayaka wanted to kill someone, why would she have chosen Makoto? That's what I do not understand."

"Well... they were pretty close." Toko chimes. Her blush implies that she has more meaning behind those words than just what she said, but I make no comment.

"That's what I don't get. We're all strangers to each other. Why would she kill the only person she knew? That'd make it a lot harder for her to go through with her plan."

My plan was to kill Leon Kuwata. That's not how it ended up. I was scared, but I was in the wrong. BUT I can't die now. Not now that I have to live for myself, and for Makoto. "Right. That wasn't my plan in the beginning..." I whisper.

Junko is the next one to speak. "Yeah, it definitely wouldn't make sense. Besides, why kill Makoto? With him being the Ultimate Lucky Student, he probably would have gotten out of anything you threw at him."

"He didn't though, did he?" Celestia slowly structures her sentence. "He is a victim, the first of us to die."

"He's really not all that lucky." Monokuma agrees.

"Oh, but I think he was." Kyoko says. "If you had to watch someone you loved get killed, would you consider yourself lucky if you could save them in any way? Even if that meant losing your own life?"

"I would." I say. Junko looks at me, but I only notice her glance from the corner of my eye.

"So would I." Mondo says slowly.

"I wouldn't. Lucky would be if I could somehow find a way to save both me and my loved one." Leon says with a snarky tone.

"That may be true. But you can't always get everything you ever wanted." Unexpectedly, this comes from Junko. "Sometimes... life just doesn't go your way. I'd consider myself lucky if I made some different choices in life that helped others more than the ones that only helped me."

"Why did you use such an example, Kyoko Kirigiri?" Celestia Ludenberg seems to see through Kyoko. Somehow, Kyoko must have found out about my plan to kill Leon. "You could have used a more direct example. Could you have not?"

"I have a confession to make." I say, no I plead. "I did try to kill someone... but it wasn't Makoto." I see Kirigiri's mask falter for a moment. She seemed surprised that I would out myself in such a way. In contrast, Junko has a smile that seems to say 'good job'. "In fact... the person I tried to kill was the one who murdered Makoto!"

I look down at my wrist. Monokuma had said something about healing my wrist. Nothing seemed to have come from it though, my wrist is still quite useless.

"Sayaka! I...!" Asahina cries. "Why would you try to murder someone."

"In my past, I've done some things I'm not happy I did. Everything I did was for the sake of being an idol. I was desperate! I wanted out!"

"'Was'? 'Wanted'?" Kyoko catches the two words that I deliberately used.

"When I saw Makoto... something happened inside me. He had been more optimistic than most, more caring, more understanding. That's why, when I saw him take my last breath, I knew I couldn't do it. I knew... I needed to survive. I need to survive for Makoto's sake!"

"Wait." Leon asks. "Did you say you saw Makoto die? You know who killed him?"

"You should too." I say. "After all, you were the one who plunged the knife within him."

I recall the confusion and the pain on Makoto's face as he collapsed to the ground, and the feeling of success that slowly morphed into shock as Leon stabbed the knife through Makoto. "You, Leon Kuwata, killed Makoto!"

"Asshole! I did not kill him!"

"The greatest proof is evidence." Kyoko says. I see Leon's mouth move in an attempt to say something along the lines of 'yeah, there's no evidence!', but instead Kyoko continues: "I have some."

"You... what!?" Leon yells.

"Hold on one moment." Mondo says, his anger back to full force. "Are we just gonna ignore the fact that Sayaka tried to kill someone?"

"Yes." Kyoko says sternly. I would have given a different answer. "For now, we must focus on Makoto's killer."

Byakuya speaks next. "I too did a fair share of investigating. There is more to do than just stare at a body." He pulls out a few crystal shards. " I found these near the incinerator, which, by the way, was left running without anyone's knowledge."

"Wait.. you mean...?" Leon asks.

"It's possible that the culprit disposed of a bloodied article of clothing by incinerating it." Kyoko confirms. "If they couldn't get through the bars blocking the incinerator, they'd likely have thrown something to activate it."

"Wait. Can anyone even hit a small button like that from such a far distance? I have the key, and I sometimes miss the button when I'm standing in front of it." Hifumi says.

"Why do you have the key?" Yasuhiro asks him.

"Monokuma left me in charge of the trash disposal system for the time being. Apparently we're supposed to take turns..."

"Oh. I see."

"Can the two of you shut up." Byakuya butts in. "The matter of who is in charge of janitorial duties and why is not aan important matter."

"It does mean that Hifumi's innocent." Junko says. "If the incinerator was left on, then it had to be someone without the keys."

"But only one person could hit a small button like that from such a distance." Byakuya says smugly. "The Ultimate Baseball Star would surely have the talent to do so. If he even has the talent that he claims."

"Wait... You're saying I did it based on assumptions! What if someone just got lucky with a throw like that? Or what if those shards were left behind by that nerd when he went to incinerate some of his porn or something."

That shocks us and keeps us silent for a moment. The silence is broken by a cough, then Kyoko. "That isn't all of the evidence. Now, you could just admit to your crimes, or we could continue showing proof for as long as you keep denying it."

"We've even got a witness." Junko yells at him, pointing at me. "I think it's obvious who killed Makoto!"

"I... YOU GUYS ARE WRONG!" In a fit of rage, Leon screams at the top of his lungs, directly his words at all of us as he sways from side-to-side. "YOU'RE ALL ASSHOLES! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU!"

"I don't know about you.." Yasuhiro says. "But I'd rather be an asshole than dead."

"Sayaka, are you positive it was Leon who you saw murder Makoto?" Chihiro asks. For the sake of clarity, likely.

"Yes..." I trail off. Perhaps it's not the wisest thing to say, but... "I did choose Leon as my target. Invited him to my room, even attacked him. I didn't anticipate that he would fight back with the replica sword and break my wrist."

"Guess I never got around to fixing that, huh?" Monokuma says in high spirits. "Guess you'll have to deal with it."

"That means Sayaka's wrist is all the proof we need that her story is real." Junko says smugly. I'm surprised... I never took her for the attentive kind of person. More hyperactive, honestly. Nevertheless, I show them my wrist and where it has bloated from where the sword hit me.

Kyoko's emotionless face doesn't change. "The only thing left to prove, is that Sayaka is not lying about whom she attempted to kill."

"I'd never do such a thing! I... I want to avenge Makoto!" I tear up as I yell this. I didn't know that was how I was feeling until I said it. Now that I did, I can't deny it.

"If she were lying," Kyoko says. "She could not have said that with enough feeling to convey the message that she had wanted to."

"HOLD IT!" Yasuhiro yells. "Don't you all remember? The Monokuma File said Makoto died in his room. Why was Sayaka there?"

"T-the two of them... they probably had a late n-night g-get together." Toko says as she blushes. I haven't spoken to her formally yet, but it seems as though she's a very perverted one. I've met many perverts, so I know how to deal with them.

"Nope!" Monokuma yells. "I would not allow anything like that!" He holds his hands up in protest. "Got it! If any of you even think to..."

Kyoko interrupts him. "The two of them likely swapped rooms for the night. Their nameplates had been switched, and I doubt it was Makoto who did such a thing." Now, she addresses me. "Why?"

"That... was my idea."

"Care to elaborate?" Kiyotaka asks me, and I brush him off with a quick "not now."

"Nevertheless, I believe our culprit should be obvious by now." Kyoko finishes the trial.

With this, Monokuma laughs. "Seems like it! Alright! All you guys have to do is cast your vote. It's decided by majority, so make sure you all know who to vote for before you do."

"Leon." I say looking down. The area around us is silent and tense, but I picture him and I in the same field Makoto and I spoke in my dreams. I turn to my left and see Makoto standing there just as he did before, with the same hopeful smile plastered on his face. I address Leon Kuwata with a smile. A fake smile, but a smile nonetheless. "I'm sorry. For everything."

Expecting Leon to freak out once more, I am surprised when he offers a genuine response. "No. It doesn't matter. No matter the outcome, I'd be dead. This is all my fault." He punches the podium. Once. Twice. Three times. "Damn it!" He yells, continuously punching the podium though blood has started flowing from his knuckles. "Damn it damn it damn it damn it!" he yells. "I shouldn't have read your stupid letter. If I hadn't, none of this would have happened. Damn it!"

"Are you done?" Monokuma asks. "Alright, cast your votes."

I do so. We all do so. I heavy air looms over us as we do. If Kyoko's information was correct, then Monokuma said the outcome was either killer would be killed, or everyone besides the killer. If we have to do this, then I'd rather be the one seeing to the end of each trial that stands before us.

"Yup! You got it!" Monokuma cheers. "The killer is... Leon Kuwata, the Ultimate Baseball Star."

"I don't understand... why didn't you stop what you were doing?" Kyotaka asks him, an intense anger laying hidden beneath his calm exterior.

"I had no choice, y'know. If I didn't kill Sayaka, she was going to kill me. It was all in self-defense. Then... Makoto just happened to show up and I thought he was in on the plan too."

Kyoko turns to me. "From the sounds of it, it seems like Makoto somehow knew you were in danger, and came to assist you. I wonder why..."

"If you guys are done yapping, it's time for the part that everyone has been waiting for! Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit's PUNISHMENT TIME!"

And so, our first trial came to an end. We had to watch, as Leon Kuwata was defeated by his own talent: beaten to death by baseballs. We stood there long after, absorbing everything that just happened. Two people have been killed, we have no idea if anyone else would join them.

Unfortunately, I knew deep in my gut that we'd be back to this courtroom. That more killings would happen.

"Now. You guys... you probably want to lock me up or something right?" I ask them. This is the first thing any of us had said since Leon's... execution. "Seeing it from your side, I must seem like a monster to you."

"I propose we lock her in her room. Place a bodyguard at her door so no one can enter or exit without one of us knowing." Ishimaru slowly comes up with the idea minutes after the words had reached his ears.

"I'll do it." Junko says with a yawn. "But first, I think we need to sleep a bit."

I watched as the others slowly stumbled towards the elevator, but I stood staring at Leon's corpse for a few moments afterwards. If Makoto were here, I'd probably tease him again.

"I knew you'd save me." I imagine myself saying.

"Huh? How'd you know?" Imaginary Makoto responds.

"Didn't I tell you? I'm psychic, silly! ...Just kidding!"

But, thinking about it, it was a little strange. Was it just coincidence that Makoto showed up right when he did, or was there something more? Was I just lucky? Or did he somehow know?

"Didn't I tell YOU?" Imaginary Makoto says to me now with a smile. "I'm psychic."

Somehow, I wouldn't doubt it.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

The mastermind behind the School Life of Mutual Killing had decided not to tell her classmates the true reasoning behind having the cameras installed within the school. Sure, let them think that they were solely for the purpose of keeping an eye on them. Disregard the possibility that they were being broadcast to the entire world.

Outside of the walls of Hope's Peak Academy, the world had long ended. Despair ravaged the land, and those hopeful enough to believe their old way of living would one day be restored had their lives taken by the mass amounts of Monokuma robots that ran rampant through the streets, killing all those in their paths.

Junko Enoshima smiled as she thought about the world she had created, and how unpredictable it had become.

In Towa City, fourteen people had been held captive by her and her followers. These fourteen people (well, twelve people and two animals) were the ones closest to Junko's classmates. Of course, Junko and her sister didn't have people held captive. After all, they were behind everything. No. Junko was behind everything. She used Mukuro to her fullest extent. Her part had been played. Like those Reserve Course kids. Now, Mukuro was just another person whose existence was useless.

The fourteen people held captive in Towa City had been used as the first motive. Something bad could happen to them. Maybe she could even force them to participate in a Killing Game of their own. Of course, the killings started soon after that motive was used, so she didn't really need them any more. She thought about having them killed, but maybe keeping them locked up would drive them to the depths of despair.

"I guess..." she mused now, trying to come up with a new motive. "Yeah... I could just kill Makoto and Leon's captives... After all, they won't have anyone to see once they're released." She nodded, before returning to her notepad. Motives, she had planned out many. The goal was to use these... what was it that creepy white-haired kid called them? Stepping stones of hope? Whatever. Use these students to drive the entire world into despair. That narrowed down the list a bit. She couldn't use a bomb threat... but could she take a captive? No, what would the point be? None of the others remember that they know each other.

"No... that's right." Junko thought back to when the fifteen participants first 'met' each other. There was that one person who noted a sense of déjà vu when they introduced themselves. Junko knew the drug wasn't perfect, she had first hand experience with a version of it. Unfortunately, the one who created it couldn't perfect it.

"Enough about him!" Junko yells to herself. She eyes the monitors, to take her mind off of things. "Maybe watching these losers will give me ideas." She carefully eyes each individual monitor, analyzing everything displayed in less than a second. Then she stops, her eyes landing on the Ultimate Programmer, Chihiro Fujisaki. "How much despair could I cause if someone weak like him managed to kill someone? Or even two people?" She cracks a huge smile, one plastered on the darkened half of Monokuma's face. "Perfect."

I don't know how this happened. I'm still at a loss for words.

I lay face-down on my bed, my head slammed as far as possible into my pillow. I can't get Makoto out of my head! His smile, his face, the memory of him helping the crane from elementary school...

...His death.

I didn't realize it before, but I have tears streaming down my face. I'm also suddenly aware of the presence standing at the door to my dorm. I look up, my eyes blurry from crying, likely red too.

"What would Makoto think of you right now?" Junko yells at me. "Wouldn't he say something stupid like, uh, 'we can't give up hope!' or something?"

She's right, though I didn't want to admit it, Makoto must be so disappointed in me from wherever he is now. Maybe in heaven, he and Leon are having some tea or coffee as they watch the rest of the game play out.

I look at Junko calmly and nod. But there's something different about her now. Her eyes were soft before, but ever since the trial, I've noticed a sharpness to them. Those can't be the eyes of the Ultimate Fashionista.

"Anyway!" Junko cheers with a smile. "Apparently the second floor has been opened. The others went and explored it. They're supposed to meet in the cafeteria, and they want us to be there."

That surprises me. I betrayed them. I tried to murder someone. And yet, I'm still treated with respect?

"Well actually they just invited me. But since I volunteered to be your guard, it's not like I could just leave you behind, y'know?"

Oh.

"Besides," she says, drifting towards the wooden desk against one wall of my room. "I've got doughnuts. I figured you'd need some cheering up."

I could sense that there was something more she wanted to add to that sentence, and I can't help but blurt out what I'm thinking: "You need cheering up to, right?"

Junko's face quickly turns from calm, to shocked, and back to calm in a flash. "Of course I need cheering up! Two people just died! And we had to watch one of them get pummelled to death by baseballs!" she yells angrily. I get a sense that she's acting a little bit, though that may just be my uncertainty of our situation. If I could be driven to attempt murder, who else could?

I sit up on my bed, and stand up slowly. "Fine. Let's go."

Junko claps. "Yeah!"

I expected people to be angry or surprised that I would show up to their meeting uninvited. On the contrary, the only people who seemed displeased with my appearance were Toko and Yasuhiro. Aside from them, the only other comment on my arrival was from Byakuya, who simply said that it would be unwise to attempt murder with so many people around. But I didn't get a feeling of uneasiness from him. More just... the usual Byakuya "Too Good For Everything" Togami vibe.

"Okay, let's report our findings!" Kiyotaka yells, slamming his hands against the table. We sit at the same seats as we did two days prior, back when there were still fifteen of us. Hifumi sits at the head of the table, with Sakura to his right. After an empty seat, where Leon sat, Junko and Mondo. One more empty seat - this one... Makoto's - then Kiyotaka. On the other side of the table sits Yasuhiro, and the rest of us girls: Celestia, Aoi, Chihiro, and I. Byakuya and Toko occupy a second table, while Kyoko is nowhere to be seen.

"Hey... has anyone seen Kyoko?" Aoi asks.

"I wouldn't be too worried about her." Byakuya says from his distant table. "Knowing her, she's probably off interrogating Monokuma or something."

"Close." I hear from the doorway, and at once we all turn our attention to the purple woman standing in the entrance to the cafeteria, a large red box snug under her arm. "I was examining this strange box that I found in the gymnasium."

She strides over to the table, and carefully places the red box in the centre. Along with everybody else, I quickly notice the large white Hope's Peak emblem burned into the side of it. "Maybe the real headmaster has left us a message!" Yasuhiro yells cheerfully. He looms over the box but frowns. "What's with this screen?"

Kyoko ignores him. "The box seems to be unlocked using a wireless controller. I was hoping one of you may have found it during your investigations." Though she talks with an emotionless mask, I see her glance at me a couple of times as she does.

"Ah, so there it is!" Another unexpected voice, this time coming from a small bear that has somehow occupied the chair in which Makoto sat. "I've been looking for that!"

We all jump back away from him as he shows up, some of us even knocking over our chairs. All but Byakuya, Celestia, and Kyoko, who seem unfazed by his sudden arrival. It's amazing how quickly they adapted to our current environment.

"May I ask what need you have for this box?" Celestia asks the bear, addressing him as if he had always been there.

"You see, this box is very important!" Monokuma cheers before his strange laugh erupts from his mouth. "This box contains your next motive!"

Back in the room from which she controls Monokuma, Junko watches all her classmates. They're too easy. Too... predictable. Maybe she shouldn't have let Makoto die so early.


	6. Chapter 6

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

"Our next motive is a fucking box." Mondo sighs, hands on his hips. "What a croc of shit."

"Mondo Owada, do not use such foul language in front of our headmaster!" Kiyotaka counters quickly, earning him a quick punch to the shoulder by Mondo. The two are quickly separated by Monokuma, who hesitantly holds his hands (paws?) out to his sides. "Whoa whoa whoa! It wouldn't be interesting if you guys killed each other before I even gave you a motive!" And with that, Mondo and Kiyotaka glare at each other but back off... for now.

Monokuma taps the top of the box, and it opens quickly. I'm the nearest to the weird bear, so I lean over and hang my head over the box's opening. Inside are a number of envelopes. "Envelopes?" I ask, heistantly grabbing one. Holding it up to the light, I examine it closely. It's small, rectangular, and a name is printed in large black letters. This one specifically has Chihiro Fujisaki on it, so I hand it to her.

"Each of you have an envelope of your own. Inside... well, I'll let that speak for itself." Monokuma shrugs as he sits on the table beside the large red box. Once we have all found the envelopes with our names, Monokuma continues his explanation: "Inside each envelope holds one of your darkest secrets. If no one is killed within seventy-two hours, I'll reveal what I have written for everyone!" He laughs his strange 'upupupu' before hopping off the table and disappearing.

"Our deepest secrets, huh?" Hifumi asks. He quickly slides open the envelope and glances at the words written on it. "WHAT IS THIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS!?" he yells soon after, sweat running from his forehead.

In response to Hifumi's panic, we all do the same. Everyone but me. I stare at the envelope for a moment as everyone around me gasps or shrieks when they read their secrets printed in front of them. Me... it doesn't matter at this point. I've resolved myself. I don't want to kill selfishly, I want to fight the despair head on. Besides, I can guess what my secret is. I've done many shameful acts to get to where I am now. I'm not entirely proud of everything I've done, but I need to embrace the fact that I did it.

Across from me, I see Kyoko watching me. Her envelope has been opened, yet unlike the others she seems unfazed by what her letter says. I watch her for a moment before she turns away. Beside me, Junko displays the exact opposite of Kyoko's calm demeanour: sweating and mumbling under her breath. After a few moments, she excuses herself. Minutes later, I'm the only one left in the cafeteria.

I stare at the large red box, and peer into it. At the very bottom, I notice two more envelopes laying face-down, yet unopened. I don't need to guess who they belong to. Nonetheless, I grab one of them.

MAKOTO NAEGI

I carefully open the envelope. I know I shouldn't, but I'm curious. If Makoto were here, he'd probably reveal his secret anyway and then go on about how we can overcome Monokuma's despair. Oh how I sometimes wish I had his courage.

I slide the small note out of the envelope, but as I do I begin to laugh. "Makoto Naegi wet the bed until the fifth grade." I read aloud. "Are you serious? That's it?" I imagine what some of the others' notes could have said, and laugh about how Makoto's could be as pale as a ghost compared to the others'.

I glance at the other letter. The one addressed for Leon Kuwata. Leon was bad at hiding stuff, so whatever this is may not be a surprise. Though we had known each other for a very short time, the second I saw Leon after being awoken by Kyoko, I could see his mask crumbling under the stress of having to deal with being the one who murdered Makoto.

When I slide the note out from its envelope, I twinge of surprise as I read it. "Though he would tell her otherwise, Leon Kuwata is actually in love with his older cousin." I re-read it over a number of times. "Huh." I mumble.

Carefully placing the letters addressed for Makoto and Leon back in the box, I sense a presence behind me. Turning around, I find a small little bear staring at me. "Howdy!" he cheers as I spot him. "A curious little girl are you?"

He notices that I clutch my own still-sealed envelope close to my chest, and shifts his attention to that instead. "Maybe not so curious. Maybe you wanted to get to know the two boys you were crushing on so when you confessed your love to them..."

"What do you want?" I mutter. Sure, I did like Makoto as more than a friend. But I'm an idol, I have an image to keep up. I can't just go and confess my love to just anyone. My fans would murder me... well, if I don't get out of here first.

"Oh don't mind me." Monokuma says as he strolls past me. "I just wanted to grab the box. And I was wondering where I had left Makoto's and Leon's secrets. I killed two rabbits with one punch!"

That is not how that phrase goes.

"So tell me Ms. Blue Hair." Monokuma leans against the box, his two hands (paws?) holding his head up. "Why haven't you looked at your motive?"

I throw it to the ground, and watch as Monokuma's eyes track it as it slowly descends towards the white tile. "I have no reason to kill anyone. I need to avenge Makoto by bringing you down."

Monokuma laughs, not his usual 'upupupu', but a full on laugh from his gut. He's surprisingly excited. "How hopeful! That's just what I like to hear. After all, the more hope you have, the more deadly the despair is when your hope comes crashing down!"

I sit on my bed, staring at the small envelope clutched in my hand. Junko had planned ahead, in case I had decided to continue portraying her in the Killing School Life. That was to be expected of the Ultimate Analyst, after all. She prepares for every possible outcome.

"The Junko Enoshima you know is actually the Ultimate Soldier, Mukuro Ikusaba!" is what the note said. But that wasn't all. After I had read that, I flipped the note around and saw a second message. "If you tell anyone my identity, I will not hesitate to execute you."

I am a Despair Sister. Throughout my whole life, I had felt the darkest despair. Or... that was the case, until I enrolled in Hope's Peak Academy. Then I met Makoto. He was the first person to ever smile at me. The first person (other than Junko) to ever treat me as more than just a weapon or an unnamed soldier. He filled me with something. A... nice something.

I even got to know my classmates. Spend time with them. The time I spent with them will be memories I will treasure forever, even if they no longer remember them. Becoming a student, someone that people actually cared about. It changed me. Junko's despair filled me with a hope that could be used to create despair; my classmates' hope filled me with a despair that slowly turned to hope.

Of course, I still helped my sister. I love her more than anything in the world. Even though sometimes she could be a little... odd. Especially when we had to deal with that Izuru Kamukura. Then she was even more herself than she was around me.

"Junko. I promise you. I will fill my classmates with hope. Their hope, will create a despair for you unlike any you have ever felt before." I said it, staring into the deep black lense of the camera hanging above me. As I did, my wig began to shift, and I quickly pulled it back down, scraping one of my stupid fake nails against my forehead as I do. I still don't understand why she wanted me to impersonate her. Junko's reasoning was that I had to because the title of Ultimate Soldier would make me suspicious for every case, but I think it maybe she intended to fill me with a despair of being unable to speak to my classmates as myself.

I fall back onto my bed, and lay down facing the ceiling. "How did everything go wrong?" I mumble. "She said she couldn't predict Makoto Naegi's actions, but she predicted that he would survive." I cover my face with my hands. "Just great." I sob. The first person to ever like me was the first person to die. Maybe that was Junko's plan all along. Give me the gift of despair by learning that the one I cared for had been murdered, and that my sister had lied to my face.

At some point, I fell asleep, awaking as the chime signalling Monokuma's announcement rings through my dorm. I wonder how long I had slept for. Is it 10:00 p.m., or is it morning already?

I get neither answer. I am instead greeted by Monokuma - my sister cheerfully exclaiming those five familiar words. "A body has been discovered!"

"A body has been discovered! After a brief period of investigation, the Class Trial will begin!" Monokuma's cheer from the screen on the wall startled me. No, it snapped me out of my trance.

"So, it's happened again." Kyoko says sternly.

About twenty-four hours after we got our second motive, we found Kiyotaka Ishimaru dead in the cafeteria.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

Last time, I was filled with adrenaline. I had attempted to murder Leon Kuwata, but my plan backfired as I was pushed back into Makoto's bathroom. It was Makoto who came to my rescue, but his life was ended as Leon pierced his stomach with the knife he was planning to kill me with.

This time, my head clear, my brain cracks as I stare at the horror in front of us.

Kiyotaka Ishimaru, the Ultimate Moral Compass, was everywhere. And that's no exaggeration. Though his body lays atop the table that had become our common meeting place, his blood was spread throughout the entirety of the dining hall.

I can't speak. I try, but only a squeak emerges from my mouth.

"This is certainly an interesting death." Kyoko remarks from beside me. When I had woken up, Kyoko and I met up as we walked to the cafeteria where we were supposed to meet. On our way there, we heard a scream, and Aoi came running out of the dining hall.

Now, most of us wander aimlessly, trying not to step on any of Taka's blood. A few of us are still missing, but will likely come running as Monokuma broadcast that a dead body had been found.

"Jesus shit!" Mondo yells, breaking the stillness of the cafeteria. He punches the wall, his face red hot with anger. "That son of a bitch went and got himself killed before we could even settle our issues!"

I stare at Kiyotaka's body, but can't help imagining it as Makoto's. I still can't believe that he, the one I kept in my mind since the day he saved that crane, was dead. Looking at Kiyotaka, I can see Makoto's spiky brown hair with that weird antenna thing atop his hopeful green eyes.

I snap out of my trance, as I see Kyoko stand up on the other side of the table. In her hand, she holds a large wooden tray, the bottom of which is caked with blood. She examines it carefully, holding it up to the light above. Her calm mask shatters for an instant as she realizes something. "What is it?" I croak. Whatever would shatter Kyoko's mask must be something big. Nothing gets by her.

Kyoko replies by setting down the tray. As she places it on the table, I notice two small things. One: whatever had been in this had been shattered, as fragments of glass dust the painted wood. Two: there are bloodstains that are dry on it, and there are some that are not. I look up, and Kyoko raises her arm. "Spread out! There may be another dead body!"

"What!?" Chihiro squeaks from the background of the crowd. It has been less than a week, and already our numbers have thinned. For two more of our comrades to have already died...

"Who's not here?" I ask aloud, and spin to face my classmates. Right away I notice that Junko is missing, but she is not the only one who is not in the dining hall. Hifumi Yamada and Yasuhiro Hagakure are both missing too.

I don't say anything as I rush from the dining hall and into the hallway. I quickly run to Junko's dorm, but don't even get to press the bell before the door opens. Relieved, I sigh. One of the three missing students have been accounted for. "What's going on!?" Junko yells at me. "I heard the announcement. What happened?"

I quickly tell her everything that we know of so far. How we found Kiyotaka in the dining hall, and how some people are missing. She and I quickly move down the hall. First we check Hifumi's room, but there is no response. Then, we check Yasuhiro's room. Again, no response.

We're about to report to the others, when we hear Monokuma's voice crackle over the many televisions around the school. "A body has been discovered! After a brief period of investigation, a Class Trial will begin!"

Returning to the dining hall, we find that only Kyoko, Toko, and Byakuya remain. Byakuya sternly informs us that the others went to investigate the second floor to search for this supposed second corpse, so Junko and I rush out and climb the stairs. We see some of the others gathering around the library, so we head there.

I push through the wall of students, and immediately wish I hadn't. Yasuhiro Hagakure has been bound by the wrists by a rope, with a knife piercing his heart. He sits slumped against a bookshelf, looking oddly peaceful in death. On the bright side... Hifumi's nowhere to be seen. That... might mean he's not dead. We can hope.

"This isn't good." Aoi stutters, shaking as if sitting in a massage chair. Her eyes are wide open, fear clouding them. "I... can't..." she runs away, and Sakura calls after her before turning back to the body of Yasuhiro.

"Two more dead bodies." Celestia says, her hand to her mouth. "It seems, someone went a little overboard and killed two people."

"There's also the possibility of these being two separate murders." Junko states coldly, her eyes focused on Yasuhiro. Like before, I don't see the Ultimate Clairvoyant resting in front of me, but I see Makoto Naegi. Seeing him motivates me to want to know how this happened, and I quickly get to work.

I bend down by Yasuhiro's corpse, and begin examining it. First, I notice that his hands are not bound by a rope, but by an extension cord. Undoing the cord, I also see that his wrists have also been slashed, though the cord must have been used to stop the bleeding. Looking him up and down, I notice a few things. He seems to have been in a fight. I have my broken wrist, but Hiro's clothes have been torn in a number of places, with each tear appearing to have been made by a knife.

Next, I turn to his front. I slowly extract the knife from his heart, his blood sticking to it as if attempting to hold it in place. I don't remove it all the way, just enough for me to confirm something. Yes, this knife was taken from the kitchen, just like mine was.

I remember back to when we were all in the dining hall, then I remember what Junko said moments prior. "This is definitely one murder, or two murders that were planned to occur simultaneously." I weave my way through Yasuhiro's large hair, but find what I was looking for. Proof that he too was knocked over the head with a blunt object: the wooden tray Kyoko had found.

"How do you know?" Chihiro squeaks again. She has a habit of not speaking loudly, but asking the questions that should be asked.

"Whoever murdered these two, did so with the wooden tray from the cafeteria." Junko says, without me needing to say anything. The way she says it is cold... distant. Not like the Junko I've come to know. "Isn't that right?"

"Y-yeah." I stutter.

"So which one of these guys were killed first?" Mondo asks, head down and hands on hips.

"Allow me to answer that question!"

We all spin towards the source of the voice: Monokuma. Flanked by Toko, Byakuya, and Kyoko no less. "Allow me to give you this: the Monokuma File!" he hands us all tablets that display images of Yasuhiro and Kiyotaka's corpses. "This should answer a lot of your questions."

"It does not, however, answer the question proposed to you." Byakuya says, without even glancing at the file. "Perhaps intentionally, the time of death is left blank."

Monokuma responds with a chuckle, before disappearing from our sights.

"But... why would someone need to go through the trouble of killing two people?" Celestia quizzes. "Killing two people would only leave behind more evidence, or am I wrong?"

Kyoko answers with a nod. "Correct. More than likely, they had to kill two people."

"All this over a secret." I mutter, and eyes turn to me. I remember that I hid my envelope within a pocket on the inside of my skirt, and I feel around to make sure it's still there.

"S-s-someone must have really wanted to keep a secret." Toko says quietly. "If they went through the t-trouble of... killing two people, one of them must have learned their secret."

"That doesn't answer all the questions." Sakura says sternly. "We have still yet to find Hifumi. For all we know, he could be dead."

"No. He can not be dead." Kyoko says confidently, striding over to examine Yasuhiro's body. Without looking up at us, she answers our silent questions. "Last night, a new rule was added to the e-Handbook."

Slowly the puzzle pieces start to come together. Celestia notices this too: "Monokuma must have been updating the e-Handbook while he watched the killer." She slowly pulls out her e-Handbook and loads it up. Clicking through the rules, she begins to read aloud. "We are all aware of the nine rules previously established, yes?"

Yes. We should all be aware of them. We went through most of them together, after all. I went through the other additions from before after the Class Trial.

Rule #1: Students may reside only within the school. Leaving campus is an unacceptable use of time.

Rule #2: "Nighttime" is from 10 pm to 7 am. Some areas are off-limits at night, so please exercise caution.

Rule #3: Sleeping anywhere other than the dormitory will be seen as sleeping in class and punished accordingly.

Rule #4: With minimal restrictions, you are free to explore Hope's Peak Academy at your discretion.

Rule #5: Violence against headmaster Monokuma is strictly prohibited, as is destruction of surveillance cameras.

Rule #6: Anyone who kills a fellow student and becomes "blackened" will graduate, unless they are discovered.

Rule #7: Once a murder takes place, a class trial will begin shortly thereafter. Participation is mandatory for all surviving students.

Rule #8: If the guilty party is exposed during the class trial, they alone will be executed.

Rule #9: If the guilty party is not exposed, they alone will graduate, and all reamining students will be executed.

Celestia clears her throat and begins to recite the newest rules. "Rule #10," she starts. "The guilty party may only kill a maximum of two people during any single 'killing game'." She looks up at Kyoko, who has bent down and begun to examine the knife that I had moved slightly. "So that is why you were certain Hifumi was not dead."

"Unless the rule was put in place after the killings occurred. The rule may have been added to prevent a repeat of this event." Junko says. Staring at her hand. She closes it, and walks away. Like Aoi before her, someone calls out to her - this time, me - but is greeted with silence.

I think, and begin to put some of the pieces together. I need to examine Kiyotaka's body, and it may be in my best interest to examine the second floor a little more.

This is a game I can not lose. I must win this game. For all of us. For Makoto. For hope.

Defeat is not an option. Not any more.


	8. Interlude 1

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Interlude 1**

Outside of Hope's Peak Academy, the world had fallen to despair. The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History had occurred outside of the academy's sealed doors, a series of events catalyzed by the true Ultimate Despair Junko Enoshima and her followers.

During The Tragedy, alumni from Hope's Peak Academy came together to found Future Foundation to combat the despair. At its head, former Hope's Peak headmaster Kazuo Tengan. He sits with his bodyguard, the Former-Ultimate Wrestler, by his side as he watches the events broadcast from within the academy. Other members of Future Foundation members join them, including vice-chairman and former-Ultimate Student Council President Kyosuke Munakata, former-Ultimate Housekeeper Chisa Yukizome, and former-Ultimate Boxer Juzo Sakakura.

"This is troubling." Kazuo muttered for the hundredth time since the broadcast started. Like those trapped within the school, they were trying to figure out the mastermind behind the School Life of Mutual Killing, but so far came up on no leads. When he asked the other Future Foundation branch heads, the only lead they had come up with was Junko Enoshima, though Kyosuke insisted that she was innocent due to the information Chisa and Juzo provided him.

"Is the extraction team in place?" Kazuo asks the Great Gozu, who answers with a nod. His large bull mask covers his face, though his long hair flows out from a hole in the back of the mask. Kazuo had only seen the man's face once, and never asked why he preferred to wear the large mask.

Kazuo had given the 3rd Division a task: rescue the students of Class 78 from their prison. They had expected the school would be guarded, but they did not know how guarded it would be. He taps a button, and one of the screens turns away from the Killing School Life and to a live feed from Koichi Kizakura, decked out in military gear, preparing to storm the school and rescue the students.

"Koichi Kizakura, is everyone in place?" Kazuo asks Koichi, who nods. Koichi's short blond hair falls from under his large, turtle shell of a helmet, and he has to tilt it upwards to keep his hair from falling into his eyes.

"Everyone's as ready as they would ever be." Koichi responds. He specifically requested his branch be the one to extract the students. He never told Kazuo why, but he knew the answer deep in his heart. He made a promise he wanted, no he needed, to keep. "Problem is, this place is a fortress. I don't know what Jin did, but from our scouts it seems impossible to infiltrate."

Kyosuke Munakata steps up from behind Kazuo, his white hair and white suit contrasting with the dark atmosphere The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History cast over the earth. "Giving up is not an option."

Koichi smiles in response. "Of course. I know that. I didn't say I would back down. It's impossible, but I'd like to try and make it possible."

Kazuo closes his eyes and lowers his head. "Do not do anything reckless, Koichi. I know that watching the death of Jin..."

Koichi holds up his hand. The Killing School Life's broadcast began with the first of Monokuma's executions: "Blast Off!". Jin was strapped in a chair, screaming for his life, before being shot up in a rock and killed by the intense heat and radiation, nothing left but his skeleton. He shuddered internally, but on the outside he kept his cool. "I've got a promise to keep to him. Can't let him down now, can I?" he smirks. "Don't worry, we've got this. You know that strange girl from 6th Division? Sleeping Mekuru? She came up with this plan. Apparently saw the position of the guns and everything."

From behind Kazuo, Juzo smiles. "She's quite the odd one, but she's capable."

Kazuo smiles. "Well then, this plan should be quite the success. I can't wait to meet the students again." his smile then turns to a frown. "Though I should probably mention that there have been two more casualties."

Koichi freezes for a moment. Two more casualties. He promised his friend Jin to protect his daughter. If anything were to happen to her, Jin would murder him. In the afterlife, he'd never hear the end of it. "Who?"

"The Ultimate Moral Compass, Kiyotaka Ishimaru." Great Gozu says sternly, reading off a clipboard with data on the Class 78 students. "And, the Ultimate Clairvoyant, Yasuhiro Hagakure."

Koichi sighs. At least Kyoko is safe. "When we break them out, we will see to it that those killed will be buried peacefully." he takes his helmet off and holds it close to his heart, before a soldier runs up behind him. He turns from the camera, his voice obscured by the wind, before turning around. "I should be going Kazuo. We're ready to begin the operation."

There would only be one survivor of the extraction operation. As the mounted machine guns tore apart all the Future Foundation soldiers attempting to break out the Ultimates, only one managed to escape with their life. Perhaps it was luck, or perhaps it was fate. Koichi Kizakura did not know.

The students inside Hope's Peak never knew that anyone had tried to break them out. From the inside, the only person who heard anything was Chihiro Fujisaki, who was studying the door as the Ultimate Programmer. From the inside, she heard the sounds of gunshots, though interpreted it as the sound of fireworks; from behind the thick steel door, it could have been anything from a scream, to a foghorn. She tilted her head before being called away.


	9. Chapter 8

**_Danganronpa_ IF: Maizono no Jikan**

* * *

I don't own this story, and the rights belong to Mirai Moon and Spike Chunsoft. You can see the story on this link wiki/Danganronpa_IF:_Maizono_no_Jikan

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

"I guess... whoever killed these two would definitely not be of the creative type." I hear Celestia say. I was too busy examining Yasuhiro's corpse to pay much attention to the others around me, so I'm a slight bit shocked when Celestia's voice breaks the silence. I glance over to where she stands and see her holding a knife, the end caked with blood. Seeing it brings back visions of Leon standing over me with a similar knife, and I can't help but glance at my still somewhat useless, but ever-bloating, wrist. No, not just a similar knife: the same knife. Or, at the very least, one also stolen from the kitchen.

I stand up slowly, leaning against the wall for support. My idea is to check the kitchen to make sure if there was a knife missing, but I don't need to as someone answers my question for me. "That's impossible!" Aoi yells. "When we first woke up and found-" she pauses, clearly not wanting to mention Kiyotaka's body. "-Well, every knife was in the kitchen."

"Then," Celestia smiles, placing her hand up to her lips. "It is certainly possible that Yasuhiro Hagakure was killed as we found Kiyotaka's body. Is there anyone who has no alibi for that time?"

"Yasuhiro, Hifumi, and Junko." I say it unconsciously. In fact, I don't even realize what I've said until I've said it. I just get looks from the others around me, the few that are still hanging around here. "Of those, we still don't know where Hifumi is."

Celestia smiles once more before turning to Aoi. "Et tu, Aoi Asahina? What were you doing in the kitchen? Looking for a weapon to kill Yasuhiro with?"

"Are you accusing me of murdering these two?!" she retaliates quickly. Admittedly, it makes her look a little suspicious. Celestia thinks so too - the look on her face makes it obvious. So obvious that I believe even Hina realized, as she eventually answered the question: "After we found... the body... I went into the kitchen to get a bottle of water."

"I seem to recall you doing something of the sort." says Byakuya Togami. Though he gives of a prestigious and commanding aura... sometimes his silence makes it possible to forget he (and by extension Toko, who seems to linger around him like a stalker) could be in the same room as you.

I take in all the info we've gathered so far. The two victims were Kiyotaka Ishimaru and Yasuhiro Hagakure. They were killed by a wooden tray that Kyoko discovered in the cafeteria, though Yasuhiro's wrists were also slashed by a knife and tied up before he died. "Hey hold on a minute..." I ponder. "If the killer really did kill these two with that tray Kyoko found, where did they get it?"

"Now that you mention it, its placement seemed out of place." Byakuya says, arms crossed. "I certainly have yet to see anything of that manner in this school."

Ignoring Byakuya, who keeps rambling on about how its sudden appearance is mysterious, I turn to the other three still lingering in the room: Aoi, Toko, and Celestia. "What about you?"

Aoi slams her fist into her opposite palm, as if crying out 'Eureka!' "I think those trays are used in the storage room. The energy protein Sakura and I like is stored in one just like that."

A few minutes later, I'm downstairs searching through the storage room. Every time I move anything, clouds of dust fly up and send me into a coughing fit.

Eventually I do find a shelf with many different supplements stacked in various crates that all look identical to the one Kyoko found. I also find two stray bottles, just sitting out of a tray. "I guess those ones were removed from the tray used to kill."

I take a good look at one of these trays, and quickly decide to test something out. I empty it, placing the bottles on the shelf next to the stays, and try and lift a tray. It's surprisingly much lighter than it looks, so there goes a potential clue.

As I begin to place the bottles back in the tray, I notice something shimmer in my peripheral vision. I glance upwards to where I thought I saw something. On a shelf to my left is a small circular piece of glass, as if removed from a pair of glasses. I hold it up to the light. It's a perfect circle.

Three people in this twisted class of our's wear glasses, but only one of them have perfectly-circular lenses. Hifumi Yamada.

After examining the piece of glass for a while, I decided to examine Kiyotaka's body once more. As expected, Kyoko is here too, but, unexpectedly, as is Junko. The latter notices me when I enter the dining hall and waves at me, but Kyoko remains as distant as ever.

"Have you discovered anything yet?" I ask the two girls, not really expecting a response from either of them.

"Nah. This investigation stuff isn't really my thing." Junko says with a chuckle. She's back to her old self, I wonder what happened to her earlier. Of course, the shock of seeing a dead body is certainly a possible explanation for her sudden change of behaviour. "What about you, Pop Star?"

The nickname 'Pop Star' twinges in the back of my mind for a moment, as if a forgotten memory is attempting to be pulled through my mind. I ignore it, pass it off as just some strange sense of déjà vu. I'm part of an idol group popular nation-wide, but I've never been called a 'pop star'. A 'star' sure, but never that. At least, not that I know of.

I push the thought out of my mind. It must be the stress. I shake my head. "Not really." I lie, then change the subject. "What about Hifumi? Has anyone found him yet?"

"Who knows where he could have gotten off to. Maybe he's hiding in the girls' locker room upstairs or something. That sleeze." she chuckles again, then begins towards the exit slowly. "I'm going to go think about some stuff for a bit. See you at the trial!"

I turn around, remembering the reason why I initially entered this room, but stop when I see Kyoko staring at me. She seems puzzled by something. "Don't you find her suspicious?" she asks.

"Why would I find her suspicious? I don't think she killed anyone."

Kyoko looks down at the ground, where her hand is. "I'm not entirely sure who that woman is." she mutters, just barely audible to me.

After investigating the dining hall with Kyoko for a little while and coming up empty, I return to the second floor. I soon find myself lost in thought about what Kyoko said, before looking up and realizing where I've wandered.

In front of me are two doors, the one on the left pink, and the right one blue. In the middle, a massive machine gun is mounted to the wall. According to some of the others, these are locker rooms, and the gun will instantly activate should a girl try and invade the boy's locker room and vice versa.

I'm a psychic! That's what I joked with Makoto, when he was still alive. Maybe my intuition is right and something important may be in this area.

Not wanting to be peppered with a million small bullets, I quickly head towards the pink door, but stop myself short of scanning my e-Handbook against the reader on the wall next to it. I find myself glancing at the blue door, which seems odd in some way.

I build up some ounce of courage, and switch my course, heading now towards the boys' locker room. "If I don't scan my e-Handbook, I'll be fine." I mutter to myself, as I slowly put my hand on the doorknob.

Just as I thought, the doorknob was broken. The door was only pushed to appear closed, but wasn't fully. A simple nudge allowed me to pull the door open with ease, and I step inside.

The boy's locker room... it's pitch black. I can't see a thing. I shuffle around the walls, and eventually find a switch on the wall. I take in a deep breath as I flip it, and slowly turn around.

My first thought when I look at the room: man, it's messy. Dumbells are littered around carelessly, as are a pair of shoes.

My second thought: what the hell!?

In the middle of the floor, Hifumi Yamada lays, a blindfold over his eyes, and a towel shoved in his mouth. His hands are tied behind him. First I think he's dead, but he must sense the light through the blindfold or hear me, as he begins shaking as I approach him. He's alive.

I first take the towel out of his mouth, and then quickly untie the blindfold. Being in this situation, I've learned that I'm surprisingly good at undoing knots quickly with only a single hand.

Now able to see and speak, Hifumi looks at me. As I suspected, one of his lenses is missing, and I see him squint trying to make me out. Eventually he begins to sweat. "Miss Sayaka Maizono!? You are the one who has saved me in my time of need!?"

I try and undo the rope around his hands, but can't. "Whoever tied this did a really good job." I grunt as I pull at it, but no use. "We need to find someone else to undo this." I say, and help Hifumi to his feet. He leans against me, and though I want to push away, I don't.

"I heard the announcement. Is it true there has been another death?" he asks me, shaking and stuttering all the while. I look down, and he understands right away.

"Not just one... two people. Yasuhiro and Kiyotaka."

He screams in shock. "Two people!?"

Eventually Hifumi calms down, and I answer whatever questions he had for me. Then I ask him one. "Do you know who did this to you?"

"I was perusing the library last night, when I heard someone coming. I ducked into the side room, but I don't remember anything after that." he recalls. Something on his face; I believe he's telling the truth. A pain in remembering the details, one I recall all too well.

"I see. One more question..." I begin to say, but am cut off as Monokuma's voice fills the air around us.

"Okay everyone, you know what time it is! Let's meet at the door outside the gymnasium again; and don't be late!"


End file.
